A woman charged with embezzling nearly $350,000 from Desert Hot Springs High School was sentenced to five years probation after pleading guilty to felony embezzlement.

Deneen Kuhlman, a school clerk, also needs to wear an ankle bracelet for 180 days and she must "scrimp and save" to pay back the money, according to her attorney, David Greenberg. So far, she's paid back about $20,000, he said. Court records show her conviction was for embezzling $346,731.

"Mrs. Kuhlman is remorseful for her actions and intends on making good on them by paying back every penny," said Greenberg, who stressed that his client notified authorities about the theft and cooperated with them during the investigation.

Riverside County District Attorney's office spokesman John Hall said Kuhlman needs to pay at least $300 per month. She needs to get a job and return to court in six months, at which point the minimum monthly payment may increase.

An investigation began in late 2017, when Kuhlman emailed Desert Hot Springs High School Principal George Bullis. She explained to him she committed the thefts, suffered financial hardships and expressed remorse and disappointment for her actions, according to a declaration in support of an arrest warrant filed by Desert Hot Springs police.

Greenberg added the money went toward basic necessities over the years.

The money was earmarked for United Student Body accounts for "various student activity programs at the school," according to Joan Boiko, spokeswoman for Palm Springs Unified School District.

"The District has taken and will continue to take all necessary measures to ensure that this type of incident does not recur in the future," Boiko said following Kuhlman's conviction.

Kuhlman worked for the district since 1997 and she was most recently listed on the high school's website as the athletic department's financial clerk.

The district said Kuhlman's salary last year was $48,622.20. According to the independent watchdog Transparent California, which obtains and publishes public-employee salaries, Kuhlman earned $46,605 in 2016, the latest year for which its records were available. Including $20,633 in benefits, her total compensation that year was $67,238.

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According to police, she claimed she maintained accurate financial records at school. She kept some money for herself when making bank deposits and edited bank statements to reflect records she maintained at school.

Her method involved printing numbers in a font similar to ones used on bank statements. She cut them out, taped them onto the statements and made photocopies, which she then submitted to school officials, police said.

The embezzling dates to before January 2002, when Kuhlman said she tried to hide the theft of up to $50,000 from her office safe. Details on that theft haven't been made available and it was never clear who was responsible, but police have said no one else is a suspect.

Desert Hot Springs police were notified about the embezzlement in December 2017 and what followed was an extensive investigation involving interviews with 75 to 100 people, Chief Dale Mondary said last year.

Investigators concluded no one else needed to be investigated in the embezzlement and that Kuhlman was not a flight risk.

Her plea was entered Wednesday in Riverside County Superior Court ahead of a court appearance that was previously scheduled for Jan. 11. Greenberg said the matter took place Wednesday after a resolution was secured and there was no intention to shield discussions from the public.

Desert Sun reporter Joe Hong contributed to this story

Desert Sun reporter Colin Atagi covers crime, public safety and road and highway safety. He can be reached at Colin.Atagi@desertsun.com or follow him at @tdscolinatagi.

Clarification: An earlier version of this story stated the conviction resulted from a plea deal.